When the Great Recession hit, food stamps were one of the ways the federal government tried to help struggling families keep their heads above water.

But on Friday, the country’s largest anti-hunger program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), is set to take huge cuts to its budget that advocates say will make it even more difficult for poor people to avoid going to bed hungry.

The cuts will effect 47 million Americans and reduce the maximum benefit for a family of four to $632 per month from $668 — a loss of $432 over the course of a year.

The cuts average out to about 2 billion meals per year across the nation. In 2014, the total cut is expected to cost $5 billion, which is equal to the amount of food distributed for free by food emergency groups.